Improvement in cotton-openers



Uivrrnn Srn'rns Pnfrnnrr @Enron VILLIAM E. VHITEHEAD, OF MILES PLATTING, ENGLAND, AND ABEL T. ATHERTON, OF LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT EN COTTON-OPENERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 146,795, dated January 27, 1874; application filed October 3, 1872.

To all whom t may concern:

13e it known that we, WILLIAM E. HITE- rIEAD, of Miles Plattiug, in the county of Lancaster, England, and ABEL T. ATHERTON, of Lowell, in the county of Middlesex and Cont monwealth of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Cotton Openers, Scutchers, Lappers, &c., of which the following is a specication:

Our invention consists" in the employment of a cylinder on a cotton-opener, &c., constructed either of rings or their equivalents, and having attached to their peripheries one or more plain angle-plates, and one or more toothed angle-plates, or said peripheries being covered exclusively with plain angle plates, these plates being constructed in such a manner as to impart to the cylinder great strength and effectiveness in opening and clcanin g cotton. Our invention further consists in the manner of attaching the sheet-iron covering' to the cylinder.

The accompanying drawings represent our invention.

Figure lis a general section of the machine. Fig. 2 is a section through the adjustable bearing. Fig. 3 is a section across the adjustable bearing. Fig. 4 is a section in the line C D, Fi g. 1, showing the movable bars. Fig. 5 is a portion of one of the toothed angleplates. Fig. G isa portion of one of the plain angle plates. Fig. 7 is a section of a portion of the cylinder, showing the slots in the plates and the sheetiron covering-pieces inserted therein. Fig. 8 is a section in the line A B, Fig. 1. Fig. J is a section across the adjustable bearing in modified form.

H is a cylinder, composed wholly of a series of Hat angle-plates, or with one or more toothed plates, attached to two or more rings,

or their equivalents. This cylinder is strongly constructed, and is intended to open the cotton when taken directly from the bale, whereas, heretofore, it has been found necessary in most cases to put the cotton from the bale through another machine prepa atory to its introduction into an opener. These plates, by being constructed in the angular form shown and described, possess great strength, and are easily and iirml y attached to the cylinder-rin gs, t

said rings having upon their peripheries re4 cesses made to receive the plates. I I I are a series of movable longitudinal grid-bars, supported at each end, and moved by means of the rack G, operated by the cam l?, to which is attached a chain-gear, said chaingear being driven by a corresponding gear on the shaft of the cylinder X.` K is one of two links, each connected at one end to the shaft of the cylinder X, and at the other end to the shaft of the adjustable swinging stripping-roll M. L is a slot in which the adjustable roll moves. M is another stripping-roll, which `operates in connection with the rollM. N represents a plain angle-plate, constructed width strong braces n, and showing upon its edges the grooves for the reception of the sheet-iron plates for covering the open spaces inthe cylinder H. O is a toothed angle-plate, also strongly made. It is a spring, operating in connection with the movable bar-rack G, to return the bars Vto their places or proper position after having been moved by the cam P. S S are sheet-iron plates, which cover the spaces in the outside of the cylinder between i the an gle-plates, and which are inserted in the grooves shown in the edges of the angle-plates.

T is a bushing, resting upon the rib V in the l plate-box U, and held in its place by a setscrew, V, entering by its point into a countersunk holein the top of the bushing. The rib is made byborin g and count-erborin g theplates box U. s

Cylinders have been made before having iiat blades attached to their surfaces, but, owing to the impossibility of iirmly securing the same, they have been abandoned. Cylinders composed of blades with rows of teeth upon their surfaces, owing to the same diiiculty of fastening, have also been abandoned.

Our blades are so constructed that all of the difculties hereinbefore mentioned are removed.

In using soine kinds of fibrous material, it may be advantageous to use a cylinder having a series of plain angle-plates upon its surface;

and, un der other circumstances, a cylindersur face covered exclusively with toothed plates may be advantageously used 5 but we have found in working cotton that a cylinder-surface composed et' toothed. and plain angleplates is the most satisfactory, since the teeth soften the 4hard bunches of cotton, and loosen the leafy and other foreign mat-ters connected with the cotton, while the plain angle-plates, following immediately after, reniove tlxe said foreign matters. By lia-ving the grid -bars more with a jarring niotion, any dirt or other ri fuse inattir lodging upon the bars'is shaken ott', and through the spaces between the saine, so that all danger', in consequence of the dirt collecting and iilling up the said spaces, and passing along with the cotton to the lap, is avoided. This bad result frequcntl y happens when the grid-bars are stationary.

Owing to the great velocity at which the fanshatts revolve, and the large amount of dirtt'rolu the cage cylinders coming in Contact with the saine, as Well as the liability of the ioors settling,'it has been found that a gre-at amount ot' friction, and consequent Wear ot' the boxes, and great expense in rei'lttii'ig, are the result, which is in a great n'ieasure cbyiated by the use of the bushin g T, the same being very simple, and cheaply inade, u'liile, from the manner in which it is attached to the plate-box U, it is easily removed when worn out, and in case of any uneyenness in the dit'- t'erent parts of the machine, it adjusts and adapts itselt` thereto Without increasing the amount oi' friction.

Fig. 9 shows a modification of the bushing as secured in the plate-box.

Then the stripping-rolls are both stationary, if a large body of cotton passes between them, the gearing which drives the rolls is lia ble to be broken 5 Whereas, by 'using an upper stripping-roll hung from, the shai'tct the top cage by ineans of links, as shown, the roll adjusts itself to any uneyenness of the lap, and all danger ot' breaking the gearing is avoided,

W11 ile its stri ppin g function s reni ain unimpaired 'Vif e have found by experience that When the sheet-iron covering attached to the cylinder is fastened to the ring by means ot screws, the drilling' and tapping ot' the rings necessary to admit the said screws renders the rings weak and more liable to break, While the edges ot the sheet-iron are liable to become raised from the rings, and, by coming in contact with the cotton, are frequently torn from the cylinder, thereby causing disastrous results, which are entirely prevented by our construction, as represented, and herein described.

liat we claim as our invention, and desire to secure by Let-ters Patent, is-

l.. The beater-cylinder H, having the sheetiron coveringplates S S applied to it, iu the manner shown and described.

2. 'llie beater cylinder Il, provided with plain angle-plates N N, constructed and arranged as and for the purpose herein specilied.

3. 'lhe angle toothed plates O O, in combination with the plain angle-plates N N, all constructed as described, and for the purpose` herein specified.

lVlLLlAlvl El). NH ITEHF A l ABEL T. ATEIER'ION. lVitnesses:

ALBERT M. Moonn, LEVI DnNNns. 

